How Was Coffee Discovered - Research Paper Example

How was coffee discovered? Introduction Almost everyone all around the world needs a refreshing cup of coffee in the morning to get them going, and according to history, this is all because of an Ethiopian goat herder by the name Kaldi. Just after oil, coffee is the second most valuable legally traded good in the world, people rely on it, love it and drink it in large quantities. So what is this ‘coffee? Coffee as people define it is a brewed drink with a distinct flavor and aroma, usually prepared by the use of roasted coffee beans. The coffee beans come from the berries of coffee plants; Study shows that the world consumes almost 2.25 billion cups of coffee on a daily basis, with New York possessing the majority of the drinkers in USA. Coffee just like many other products has an interesting history; this research focuses on providing a background on where the caffeinated phenomenon begin and what made it loved so much (Pendergrast, 2001). History Just like many other products the beginnings of coffee are enveloped in lore and mystery, legend states that the Ethiopian goat herder by the name of Kaldi discovered the crop. Kaldi noticed that his goats had full energy and were flokering soon after eating berries of coffee shrub, when Kaldi tried the same berries he had the same reaction. Later a monk took the berries to his fellow monks who spent the whole night alert and awake which was probably a reaction from the high caffeine found in coffee berries, a stimulant that usually protects the coffee crop from pests. Soon after the two incidents the knowledge about the energizing effects of the coffee berries started spreading all around the world, the word moved east reaching Arabian Peninsula, from there the reputation of the plant spread all around the globe. The Arabs in the Arabian Peninsula began the cultivation of the crop and also were the first to begin the trade of coffee berries, the cultivation of the crop spread around the Arab world fact, by 16th century countries such as Egypt, Turkey Syrian, and Persia cultivated the crop and traded its berries. People did not only drink coffee at homes but also in many of the coffee houses during the period; this coffee houses began appearing in different cities all across the east. As the coffee houses (qahveh kahneh) increased so did the people who frequented these places, the people increased as this was not only a place for drinking coffee, they also engaged in conversation, watched performers and listened to music. The word about the new product kept spreading, to maintain a monopoly of the coffee trade the Arabians kept their production closely guarded. As the years passed, the Arabs could not control the spread of the knowledge about the new crop, the Europeans that dwelled near the east brought news to their fellow Europeans about the unusual dark black beverage in the Arabian world. By the beginning of the 17th century, the Europeans had enough knowledge about coffee; this resulted in an increase in popularity all around the continent. Some clergies in that era condemned coffee calling it a ‘bitter invention of Satan, this changed when the pope tasted the beverage discovering that the so-called ‘invention of Satan was so refreshing and satisfying. Even with the controversies from the religious leaders cities such as Austria, France, Holland, Germany, and England had coffee houses where people met to take the beverage and also acted as centers for communication and social activities. By the 17th century, London had more than 300 coffehouses, these coffee houses mainly attracted patrons that had common interests, and they included the merchant, brokers artists, and shippers. The religious and political talks about the new product within England resulted in the ban of women; women were banned from visiting the coffee houses. During this period, many of the coffee drinkers believed that the product contained important medicinal values. Many businesses grew as a result of this product; many of these businesses were mainly coffee houses. Coffee reached Germany in 1675, merchants in the country began building coffee houses between 1679 and 1680, and these coffee houses were mainly located in Bremen Hamburg and Hanover. At first, many of the Germans considered coffee as a beverage of the noble; the middle and the lower classes rarely drank it until the early 18th century. Germans only drank coffee in the coffee houses until the 18th century when people began preparing it at their homes, just as in England coffee houses belonged to the men; only men could visit these houses. Holland has a very different coffee history as compared to other countries within Europe; the Dutch only concerned themselves with coffees trade rather than its consumption. Coffee reached the country in the 17th century, during this century the Dutch began cultivating the crop in its colonies, mainly in the island of Java. In the year 1711, the Dutch sold the Javanese coffee berries Amsterdam via the open markets. The coffee houses in Holland opened later after some years of trade; the houses features warm atmospheres, rich décor, and lush gardens. They were located in the financial districts within the Dutch cities, the merchants and the financiers were the main visitors of the coffee houses in which they came to discuss their businesses. Later in 1680s, coffee reached Scandinavia, which is todays region with the highest per capita consumption of the coffee beverage in the world (Samat, 2009). In the mid-1600, coffee entered New Amsterdam, which is currently called the New York and which comprises of the most coffee drinkers in United States of America. Back before the arrival of coffee in New Amsterdam, tea was the favorite drink; tea remained the favorite drink until 1773 when King George imposed heavy tax on tea. This changed the drinking patterns within America and made coffee the most preferred beverage. Coffee spread all over north and southern America, from New Amsterdam to Brazil and to Jamaican islands. Plantations around the world As demand for coffee across the world increased, there was an increased competition outside Arabia. The Arabs tried hard to maintain the monopoly of coffee business but in vain, the Dutch succeeded in obtaining the coffee berry and seedlings (Standage, 2005). The Dutch first attempted to plant them in India but this failed, their efforts became successful after the attempt in Batavia on the island of Java commonly known as Indonesia. The coffee crop thrived fast making the Dutch possess a productive and a growing trade in coffee, the Dutch people later expanded the cultivation of the crop to Celebes and Sumatra. In 1714, the mayor of Amsterdam presented a coffee seedling to King Louis of France; the king ordered the servants to plant the seedling in a royal botanical garden in Paris. Once planted the seedling thrived and its seeds brought about over other 18 million crops over the years, this was the stock of the coffee tree plants all over the Caribbean (South America). Francisco de Mello introduced the crop to Brazil, the Brazil emperor sent Mello to the French Guiana to obtain the coffee seedlings, and however the French emperor was unwilling to share, until the Guianas wife infatuated by Mellos handsomeness presented a banquet of flowers with a coffee seedling hidden inside. With only a 100 years since its discoverance coffee had established itself as a commodity crop all around the globe, countries were in search for this cash crop that produced a satisfying beverage. Traders and colonists, missionaries, and travelers, continued to carry coffee seeds to the new lands they visited, through this the knowledge about coffee kept spreading rapidly. Countries established plantations on rugged mountains and magnificent tropical forests; some succeeded while others failed. Coffee economies resulted in the establishment of new nations through coffee planting, countries, and merchants made fortunes while others lost, by the end of the 18th-century coffee were among the most profitable export crops Many people as seen from the above information drink coffee on a daily basis, but how many know of its origins? Does it have benefits? Historically the drinkers of coffee mainly in the Arabian world and the European world believed that coffee had some health benefits, and yes, it does have some benefits. However, many of the drinkers back in the days believed that coffee only gave one energy there is some important concept that was left out(Standage, 2005). The energy and the refreshing ability of coffee came from the fact that coffee acts as an antioxidant that has a lot of adverse benefits. Coffee drinkers have less probability of getting some diseases, it does improve the energy levels, and also make an individual smarter, the drinkers of coffee as evident from the discovery through the years is that it is energizing and refreshing. This is mainly because of the caffeine in coffee that helps the coffee plant protect itself against pests, once one drinks coffee caffeine travels fact through the body giving the energizing effect. All the above information is very important as many of the coffee drinkers drink coffee without knowing its benefits, its discovery has altered the culture as people now prefer coffee over other beverages, for example in America the drinking cultures changed from tea to coffee. Also currently with increased knowledge, peoples tendency of drinking coffee has increased from the fact that it contains caffeine which has health benefits to human beings (Thurber, 2000). Conclusion Today coffee growing is all over the world; countries plant coffee plants both for commercial purposes and at the same time as beverages in their home. However even with the increased knowledge about coffee and its benefits all the continents, Asia, islands of the carnelian, North and South American and even Africa all trace their coffee heritage to the ancient coffee forest in Ethiopia (Standage, 2005) Work cited "Business and the Coffee House." Business History Review: 10-13. Print. Chapman, Garry, and Gary Hodges. Coffee. Mankato, Minn.: Smart Apple Media, 2011. Print. Pendergrast, Mark. Uncommon Grounds: The History of Coffee and How It Transformed Our World. New York, NY: Basic, 2001. Print. Samat, Maguelonne. A History of Food. New Expanded ed. Chichester, West Sussex, U.K.: Wiley-Blackwell, 2009. Print. Standage, Tom. A History of the World in 6 Glasses. New York: Walker & :, 2005. Print. Thurber, Francis B. Coffee: From Plantation to Cup A Brief History of Coffee Production and Consumption. New York: American Grocer Pub. Association, 2000. Print. Vega, Fernando E. ":Coffee: A Dark History." The Quarterly Review of Biology: 283-84. Print. Read More